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Victory! Now What?

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On Fridays, we are posting entries for a weekly blog journey by Angela Williams, our Young Adult Volunteer, of the day-to-day work to organize and create positive social change in her community. We invite you to join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter!

by Angela Williams

This week, Washington Interfaith Network celebrated a win after a three year organizing campaign around closing a homeless shelter in Washington, DC! DC General used to be a hospital. After the hospital closed, the city decided to turn it into transitional family shelter to handle the crisis of family homelessness the city faced over ten years ago. The grounds of DC General are dilapidated. The building has extreme maintenance needs that have gone unaddressed for years. Up until a few years ago, the children living at DC General had no playground or park. The laundry facilities are in disrepair. The food served in the cafeteria is often past its due date and/or moldy. The facility frequently has rats or even raccoons inside! The shelter was not a priority for City Council until 8-year-old Relisha Rudd disappeared from the campus over two years ago. Clearly, this is not a place for any humans to live.

dc generalMayor Muriel Bowser committed to closing DC General and opening up smaller family transitional shelters throughout the city when she took office in January 2015. I have been aware of and involved in this campaign since September 2015. This week, the City Council approved Mayor Bowser’s bill to close DC General and open transitional shelters! The bill has experienced a series of edits and the version approved is different from the original plan Mayor Bowser originally proposed. While the plan may not be perfect, the city has made great strides in actively striving to improve lives of families experiencing homelessness. It’s a victory! Hooray!

So now what?

In organizing, we know that a win only means that we have more work to do. Yes, the bill has been approved by the City Council; however, the work doesn’t stop there.

  • Many of the proposed shelter locations require zoning changes in order for construction to begin.

  • Providing housing for the 250 families currently housed in DC General does nothing to slow the affordable housing crisis happening throughout the city.

  • Sure, the council unanimously approved this plan, but we still have to be proactive about holding them accountable to their actions.

We “won,” but the work is far from over.

In a similar vein, after a year of searching, my home church has just called two associate pastors. Hooray! We will finally have a full staff of called and installed teaching elders after many years of transition.

So now what?

Now comes the process of welcoming these new members of our community. One of the pastors was serving as an interim, so this transition means she can continue the good work that has already begun. She can put more energy into seeing a longer term vision now that she knows she is not leaving when the nominating committee finds someone else. The other pastor is receiving her first call out of seminary and moving to a new place physically and vocationally. Now is the time to lay the groundwork of new relationships, to continue fostering ministries, and to create space for new perspectives.

We’ve ended our pastoral search, but our work is far from over.

Through both of these times of transition, relationships and listening to others is crucial in paving a healthy and functional way forward. Some work is over and should be celebrated! And there is more work to do. God is working through these transitions to continue to create the world as it should be.

AngelaWilliams270Angela Williams is currently walking alongside the good folks at NEXT Church and New York Avenue Presbyterian Church as a Young Adult Volunteer in Washington, D.C., after serving a first YAV year in the Philippines. She finds life in experiencing music, community organizing, cooking any recipe she can find, making friends on the street, and theological discussions that go off the beaten path.

Challenges of Organizing a Movement

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On Fridays, we are posting entries for a weekly blog journey by Angela Williams, our Young Adult Volunteer, of the day-to-day work to organize and create positive social change in her community. We invite you to join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter!

by Angela Williams

When a group tries to bring together people from many different backgrounds, it can be unwieldy… and beautiful. Washington Interfaith Network (WIN), my local community organizing affiliate, has over 50 member institutions, including labor unions, Protestant and Catholic churches, a mosque, a synagogue, and community organizations representing thousands of DC residents. With such a broad base of people bringing their different perspectives to the table, it is definitely challenging to focus energy around a specific cause or plan of action. In these days of extreme polarization, one may ask how it is possible to build consensus or find common ground on anything. From my experience, inviting so many to the table is one of the most difficult parts of this work, but it is also one of the most essential. To lose any part of that broad base is to lose power, or, as organizing defines power: the ability to do something.

tsr_4472_webWIN meetings are some of the most diverse spaces of my week, but with that diversity comes different theologies, political ideologies, genders, races, sexual orientations, ages, values, and ideas. Maintaining focus on a given campaign or keeping interest in a particular method of action can be incredibly difficult. I greatly admire organizers who can read a room and smoothly run a meeting while respecting the voices of all at the table. I am committed to that broad base and keeping as many voices at the table as possible because I believe that’s how Jesus Christ lived. Our society is still segregated by race and class, but when we all join around a table, we live out the body of Christ. I see glimpses of heaven, the world as it should be, when we are in community around a table discussing door knocking, phone calls, listening sessions, and planning an action. I feel closer to this city and closer to God when I am in the room with folks I may have never met had I not been involved with WIN.

However, we all know situations when sitting around a meeting table felt more like hell than heaven, when one person derails the entire meeting to go on an irrelevant tangent, when not every person is on the same page regarding the agenda or planned method. Meetings can be particularly difficult for folks who are just getting a taste for organizing (an experience not unlike walking into our sanctuaries for the first time!). Maybe this is their first organizing meeting and a friend invited them to come, or maybe they are simply fed up with not having a voice in community changes. Perhaps this is the first time they are engaging with a particular issue agenda, and they are lacking the background context. Maybe this is the first time they have sat at a table and had real discussion with folks who do not look, think, or act like them. Just as it would be impossible to give 500 years of history of the Reformed order of worship at the beginning of every service, trying to cram all the philosophy of the organization and history of the issue into the first five minutes of every single meeting is impossible. Unfortunately, not every person connected to WIN comes with a background knowledge of community organizing and jargon dictionary at the ready. Often, they come in with a friend, some questions, perhaps some anger or agitation, and a desire to make change.

So, how do we welcome people into a movement? How do we welcome others into a conversation and community that is already in progress and will continue when they are gone? How do we invite others to the table to be the body of Christ with us? How do we invite them to make the world as it should be with us? How do we live out Christ’s call to love each other as we love ourselves? I think each of us could learn a bit about how to expand the we to include folks who may not have had a voice in the meeting and a seat at the table before.

What I have learned from organizing is that it is all about the relational quality of the gathering. Every organizing meeting begins with a rounds question, just so we all know who is in the room, a bit of where each person comes from, and what they are bringing to the table. Giving each person a voice at the beginning of the meeting can help those uncertain to speak the confidence to share their voice again later.

What are some practices that you have experienced that help to welcome people into a new institution so they feel involved and integrated quickly?

AngelaWilliams270Angela Williams is currently walking alongside the good folks at NEXT Church and New York Avenue Presbyterian Church as a Young Adult Volunteer in Washington, D.C., after serving a first YAV year in the Philippines. She finds life in experiencing music, community organizing, cooking any recipe she can find, making friends on the street, and theological discussions that go off the beaten path.

Activism vs. Organizing

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On Fridays, we are posting entries for a weekly blog journey by Angela Williams, our Young Adult Volunteer, of the day-to-day work to organize and create positive social change in her community. We invite you to join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter!

by Angela Williams

Last week, I had the opportunity to participate in two direct actions, one focused on the federal government and the other directed toward local transportation authorities.

Planting the Seeds of Action

angela-dem-springFor the federal action, I first received news regarding the plans for massive acts of civil disobedience via email a few weeks beforehand. Democracy Spring was a 16-day action that began with an 8-day march from Philadelphia to Washington, DC, and culminated in 8 days of sit-ins at the US Capitol building in the name of getting big money out of politics.

When I originally received the emails, I thought about what brought me to DC. I first felt the call to activism, advocacy, and community organizing when I attended a memorial service and march of 20,000 people protesting the Philippine government’s response to Typhoon Yolanda/Haiyan. That day I felt God calling me back to my home country where I could use my voice to create positive social change. When the #BlackLivesMatter movement was marching in Baltimore, Ferguson, Chicago, and New York, I longed to stand in solidarity with people who have historically, and presently, experienced systemic discrimination. I have lived in Washington, DC, for seven months and participated in zero protests, demonstrations, or marches. Plus, the kickoff for the week of sit-ins was on Monday, April 11, my day off. I could totally make it work.

Within an hour of signing up, I received a phone call from a Democracy Spring organizer checking in to see if I had any questions and asking me if I was willing to risk arrest. Well that was not on my to-do list, but I considered it. In talking to my parents, my YAV community, my supervisors, and my site coordinator, I pondered a few questions. What would be the consequences of getting arrested? Would there be legal support? Would I actually go to jail? Would this go on my permanent record? Could I get a job with this on my record? How long would I be detained? What would that say about my privilege to be arrested and detained without experiencing police brutality and misconduct? As a YAV working with NEXT Church and New York Avenue Presbyterian Church, how would I be representing those organizations? Is ending government corruption and getting money out of politics the issue for which I want to be arrested? Is this the best way to use my time, body, and voice? Will my arrest actually accomplish anything?

After talking to the parties listed above and some faith leaders who have been arrested, I discerned that this was not my time to risk arrest. Another deciding factor was the fact that I was planning another action with WIN that was scheduled for the evening of Monday, April 11. I couldn’t quite organize my own action if I were sitting in a holding cell somewhere in the Capitol.

The Local Context

One of WIN’s campaigns has focused on safe transportation and fair wages for transportation operators. The DC Circulator is a bus line in DC that is funded by DC tax dollars but outsourced to a private multinational transit corporation. Even though DC Circulator operators do the same jobs as the Metrobus operators, the public bus company in the District, Circulator operators receive on average $8.22 less per hour than Metrobus operators. Additionally, a maintenance audit released in April showed that 95% of buses on the road had enough safety defects that they should not be in service. So what do we do with this information? As a WIN leader at New York Avenue Presbyterian Church, I talked to members interested in WIN and young adults about the issue and encouraged them to take action. The plan was to meet and listen to Circulator operators themselves about the situation and then hop on a bus to tell passengers what we heard.

Who is in the Room?

Before I could participate in an act of civil disobedience at the Capitol, I had to attend a nonviolent action training. People from all over the country had traveled by train, plane, automobile, and foot to take a stand against big money in politics. Washington, DC, is one of the most diverse cities in the country and definitely the most diverse place I have ever lived in the US, so it struck me that the training room was predominantly filled with white people. I would venture to say that the vast majority of them support Senator Bernie Sanders for president. This anti-corruption movement had billed itself as a non-partisan action that brought liberals and conservatives of every background together, but that was not who I saw in the room. It was telling of who is able to drop everything to travel across the country and risk an arrest record in an effort to reverse Citizens United, end super PACS, and enact campaign finance reform. On the day of the action, it was difficult for me to be fully present and passionate about this issue because, based on my research, the five bills that Democracy Spring wants Congress to pass have 0-1% chance of becoming law. When we chanted, “I believe that we will win!” I was not convinced that we would win. What would winning even look like?

angela-parachuteMonday afternoon I helped to carry a parachute bearing the words “Democracy Spring: Protect Voting Rights,” and we approached the Capitol plaza, marching up to the steps where members of the Capitol Police Department were waiting for us. After ten minutes and two warnings, I had to move or risk being arrested. The police officers herded us back across the plaza so that about 150 feet stood between the group legally protesting and the group sitting in risking arrest. Those first moments of movement were the most tense with protesters chanting, singing, and even yelling at the police. I wondered why some were yelling at the police rather than trying to start a dialogue with them. I realized that organizing had ruined me for activism.

Organizing Basics

The root of community organizing is the relational meeting, one on one conversations with leaders and individuals in churches, neighborhoods, government, unions, and other institutions, in order to learn what drives people, where their self-interest or deepest passion lies. Thinking theologically, Roger Gench describes relational meetings as opportunities to encounter the risen Christ in our fellow humans. Organizing is a pragmatic alternative to yelling in the streets outside of a building where no one is listening. An organizing strategy would be to engage directly with those in power to act on your issue, learn their self-interest (it is in the interest of most politicians to be re-elected), and plan a campaign to build the power you need to create change around that issue that you care about.

Confrontation or Conversation?

Back at the Democracy Spring event, I stood in the sun for five hours, waiting for Capitol Police to arrest each of the 400 people who continued to sit in. During that time, I was able to have a pleasant conversation with one of the officers standing on the front line between the groups of demonstrators. From what I observed, all officers acted professionally and responsibly with both groups, for which I am extremely grateful.

Faith on the Bus

Eventually, I had to make my way back to church to meet my WIN action folks for our local action. Our group of seven concerned citizens, organizers, and Circulator operators discussed the issues that the operators face and learned the relevant facts. Then we took to the buses. During our rides, we talked to every passenger on our respective bus. About 25 people sent tweets and left messages for the DC Department of Transportation, holding them accountable for the safety of the buses and fair wages for the operators. While it was a much smaller action, the goal was clear, and success is much more probable since the operators are organized and currently in negotiations with the contracted company regarding bus safety and operator wages.

While I do not doubt that the organizers of Democracy Spring used relational meetings to set up the logistics of the action, it was clear that the marchers were a group of individuals who may not have had any connection to an institution that was working with Democracy Spring. For the WIN action, each person was connected to a member institution of WIN (New York Avenue PC and Amalgamated Transit Union). As leaders and organizers, we had to establish relationships with everyone at the action before we came together to tell others about the DC Circulator. Since the WIN action was focused on a local issue, it was easier to build a sense of community amongst everyone who showed up for the Circulator without needing a large social media presence. For me, the intimate setting and great efficacy of the WIN action was more of a win for me than sitting in at the Capitol with Democracy Spring. Our society probably needs both symbolic activism and long-game community organizing efforts to create the change we want to see.

In my heart and mind, organizing has won over activism.

AngelaWilliams270Angela Williams is currently walking alongside the good folks at NEXT Church and New York Avenue Presbyterian Church as a Young Adult Volunteer in Washington, D.C., after serving a first YAV year in the Philippines. She finds life in experiencing music, community organizing, cooking any recipe she can find, making friends on the street, and theological discussions that go off the beaten path.

Community Work, Transforming the World

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by Angela Williams

When I was discerning a second year in the Young Adult Volunteer (YAV) program, I felt called to focus on activism, advocacy and community organizing. At the time, I did not know that working with NEXT Church would dip my toes into the world of community organizing. I did not know that splitting my time with NEXT and New York Avenue Presbyterian Church would place me in direct contact with pastors who have been organizing for more than 25 years. I did not know that I would become a part of a core team of leaders in the church organizing with Washington Interfaith Network (WIN), an affiliate of the Metro Industrial Areas Foundation. I did not know that this would be my perfect placement.

tsr_5500_webIn the past seven months, I have learned practical and applicable skills to work in the world as it is in order to help transform it into the world as it should be. In the church, we use language like “redemption” and “reconciliation” to describe how God is working with us here and now to create the world as it should be. As resurrection people, we see many cases of injustice, indecency and death in the world around us, but we have faith in the good news of Jesus Christ that tells us God is not done working to reconcile, redeem and resurrect every part of Creation. Because of this truth, we must continue to have hope that God is working to make all things new, to make the world as it should be.

Together, as a community of beloved children of God, we are called to do our part in reconciliation and redemption efforts. Baltimoreans United in Leadership Development (BUILD), a sister organization to WIN, shared some of their organizing story at the 2016 National Gathering, which continues to inspire me. Their leadership illustrated what is possible when faith leaders, community members, governments and businesses, representing all colors and creeds, come together to improve the community. However, Alison Harrington reminded me, the nitty gritty work is not sexy, nor does it make headlines. Often, it is difficult, mundane and frustrating. Still, I remain committed to the idea that organizing is a necessary and essential part of creating the world as it should be. If you missed Alison and BUILD at the National Gathering, I encourage you to check out the videos of their time at the National Gathering, as well as all of our other challenging, yet inspiring speakers.

I invite you to join me on this weekly blog journey of the day-to-day work to organize and create positive social change in my community. Perhaps you may find possibilities to act in your own context.

AngelaWilliams270Angela Williams is currently walking alongside the good folks at NEXT Church and New York Avenue Presbyterian Church as a Young Adult Volunteer in Washington, D.C., after serving a first YAV year in the Philippines. She finds life in experiencing music, community organizing, cooking any recipe she can find, making friends on the street, and theological discussions that go off the beaten path.